AMES, Iowa – Iowa State (18-10, 9-8 Big 12) rolled over Kansas State (18-11, 9-8 Big 12), outscoring the Wildcats 36-16 in the second half en route to a 57-33 Big 12 victory Wednesday in Hilton Coliseum on Senior Night. The victory, the school’s first ever on Feb. 29, moved Iowa State into fourth-place in the Big 12 by virtue of sweeping Kansas State this season.
Iowa State’s defense limited Kansas State to 29 percent shooting. The Wildcats’ 33-point scoring total was the fewest Iowa State has conceded in a conference game in the Big 12 era. Nikki Moody led the Cyclones with 15 points, including a trio of 3-pointers. Hallie Christofferson tallied 14 points and a team-high eight rebounds and Lauren Mansfield had 13 points.
The Cyclones swamped the Wildcats despite having leading scorer and rebounder Chelsea Poppens on the floor for just 17 minutes because of foul trouble. She scored four points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Iowa State quickly built on its 21-17 halftime lead with a 14-4 run out of the gate after intermission that included 3-pointers by Christofferson and Mansfield. The Cyclones led 35-21 at the 14:34 mark of the second half and never looked back.
Neither team was in sync during the first half as the two squads combined for 19 turnovers. Iowa State got a bump in the final two minutes of the first stanza as two Christofferson free throws, a 3-pointer by Moody and a bucket by Christofferson with three seconds remaining gave Iowa State at its four-point lead at halftime.
Iowa State outscored Kansas State 22-4 off turnovers.
Iowa State can finish lower than fifth in the Big 12, and concludes the regular season Saturday at 11 a.m. CST at No. 1 Baylor in Waco, Texas. The game will be televised by Fox Sports Net.
